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My First Welder and First Project

I just got my Miller 150S this week. Since I needed a welding table I thought it would be a good first project. It’s based on the welding table project on the Lincoln Electric site. The hardest part was welding on the coupling nuts for the casters even after sanding off the zinc plating. Once I got an ugly but serviceable weld I found I had penetrated a bit too much and had to spend about an hour running a tap through and then testing with a bolt over and over before the bolt went all the way through.

Joe

PS: The welding table is supporting a dish of ice cream that my wifeP1010265.jpgP1010266.jpg insisted be in the picture.

Thanks, I used 6011 stick. I'm pleased with the result even though for a few bucks more I could've bought a Miller folding table. But, as Jigantor pointed out, I did learn a lot. Some of it, real basic, like getting familiar with a chop saw.

Thanks, I used 6011 stick. I'm pleased with the result even though for a few bucks more I could've bought a Miller folding table. But, as Jigantor pointed out, I did learn a lot. Some of it, real basic, like getting familiar with a chop saw.

How thick is the top? I tend to go heavy on the top as I am usually beating on something there. Also helps with keeping it flat over time.

Thanks. The top is 3/16" the bottom is 1/8" or I believe 10 g. The horizontal angles are 3/4." I would've preferred 1," but the angles and plate I bought was dictated by what was available at the building supply store. The top is too bouncy for pounding. Perhaps I'll stiffen it by welding an X brace underneath it at some later time. At the time I didn't want the table to be heavy because I wasn't sure I would be able to handle it. Nevertheless, I can appreciate why some use 3/4" plate on top.

Btw, the only thing I did differently from what was on the web site was to shear off a half inch off the width and depth of the bottom plate so that the legs would be square. If you follow the directions on the Lincoln site the legs will be splayed out a bit. The aesthetics of that bothered me.

When you spring for the bucks to buy a nice new welder and the steel to make a welding table it is appropriate to place a bowl of ice cream on top of it, for the inauguration picture.

I had a couple things that could help you in the future.

If you want to take zinc plating off coupler nuts or any other hardware for that matter put it in Hydrochloric acid (Muriatic acid) for about 15 minutes and then rinse well in water. The acid will make a lot of bubbles and remove the plating. You can get the acid in the paint department of home depot. It is used for cleaning concrete. Picture 1 shows a coupler bubbling away in the acid. Picture 2 shows a coupler before and one after the zinc plating was removed.

If you are going to weld in a coupler pick the largest hex size you can find. It will give you a better chance of not having the weld penetrate through to the threads. Picture 3 shows two 3/8”couplers that have different hex sizes. Use the larger one.

Coat a bolt or threaded rod with anti-seize and screw it into the thread of the coupler before welding. This will act as a heat sink and help to keep the weld from penetrating into the threads of the coupler.

Use a 6013 rod instead of a 6011 rod. The 6013 rod is designed for mild penetration while the 6011 is for deep penetration. This will help keep the weld from penetrating into the threads. Picture 4 shows the larger coupler welded to angle iron like yours with a 6013 rod.

I’m not sure if this is the case but I will often offset the top plate ¼” from the outside edge so that I can use a fillet weld to attach the plate to the frame as shown in picture 5.

You might enjoy attached link. It talks about the 6013 rod and the 6011 rod. It is specifically for A/C but it would also apply to your DC.

Don 52 mentioned good points. You should try some 3/32'' 7018 along with the
6013. I think you will really like these rods.
What's your location ?
Looking forward you next project photos. As your skill level increases, the wife may just add whip cream to the ice cream.